Scottish Parliament

Written Answers

Monday 15 November 1999

Scottish Executive

Environment

Mr Kenny MacAskill (Lothians) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will detail (a) the amount of nuclear waste stored in Scotland on a monthly basis over the last three years, (b) the locations of such waste and (c) the procedures for monitoring the storage of the waste, including the nature and frequency of checks as part of the monitoring procedures.

Sarah Boyack: The storage of nuclear waste is covered by the nuclear site licences granted by the Nuclear Installations Inspectorate (NII). This reflects the NII’s function of administering nuclear site licences and regulating nuclear waste management and safety on nuclear licensed sites, which are reserved matters. Storage of nuclear waste at Ministry of Defence sites is also a reserved matter.

  I understand, that the information sought is not available centrally in the form requested. Nuclear licensees themselves are responsible for monitoring and maintaining detailed records of the amount and location of nuclear waste.

Environment

Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will require all local authorities to follow the example of Glasgow City Council and establish a register of all types of telecommunications equipment, including mobile phone transmitter masts, within their area.

Sarah Boyack: Advice on best practice in dealing with telecommunications development is being developed. It will recommend that authorities keep a register of masts and other structures on which telecommunications apparatus could be attached. The aim will be to encourage the use of existing sites and minimise the number of new masts.

Environment

Andrew Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what procedures have to be followed to change a site from a quarry to a landfill site, and how many and which former quarries in Scotland have now become landfill sites.

Sarah Boyack: In order to effect a change of use from a quarry to a landfill site requires an application for planning permission from the local council. A waste management licence would also then need to be obtained from the Scottish Environment Protection Agency to operate a landfill at the site. There are no centrally held records of which former quarries in Scotland have become landfills.

Environment

Mr Gil Paterson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of the Scottish population lives in areas which are not covered by streetlighting provided by the local authority or other public bodies.

Sarah Boyack: The Scottish Executive does not hold the information requested.

Finance

Ms Margaret Curran (Glasgow Baillieston) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what the Warm Deal budget will be in 2000-01 and 2001-02.

Ms Wendy Alexander: The new Warm Deal began on 1 July and we plan to spend £10.5 million on it during the current financial year. We plan to increase the Warm Deal budget to £13 million in 2000-01 and to £14.5 million in 2001-02. Over the three years, with £38 million available, we expect to install insulation packages in more than 75,000 homes, providing warmer homes which are cheaper to heat for elderly and low-income households whose need is greatest.

Fisheries

Mr Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether resources at the laboratory testing shellfish samples for Amnesic Shellfish Poisoning are adequate to ensure that restrictions or delays on the testing of samples do not unnecessarily prolong the closure of shellfish fisheries.

Susan Deacon: The monitoring programme for Amnesic Shellfish Poisoning is undertaken by the Marine Laboratory, Aberdeen. The Scottish Executive provides the necessary resources to undertake this work. The closure orders on scallop fishing will be lifted when toxin levels are consistently below the legal limit and scientific advice indicates that it is safe to do so.

Health

Shona Robison (North-East Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what steps are being taken to obtain further supplies of meningitis vaccine, and how will it ensure that these are distributed to GPs.

Susan Deacon: Adequate supplies of polysacharine vaccine for Scottish needs were achieved. Vaccine supplies for use in Scotland are initially delivered to the national holding centre in Cumbernauld and from there distributed to local holding centres with onward delivery to GPs and student health services. The Scottish Executive Meningococcal Vaccine Implementation Group appointed a subgroup to oversee vaccine distribution. This subgroup, acting in conjunction with Health Board Immunisation Co-ordinators and Trust Chief Pharmacists, helped to achieve equitable and appropriate vaccine distribution.

Health

Dorothy-Grace Elder (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many specialist beds are provided in Scotland for the treatment of anorexia nervosa by (a) the NHS and (b) the private sector, broken down by region.

Susan Deacon: The care and treatment of individuals with eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa or bulimia is covered by the Framework of Mental Health Service in Scotland, published in 1997. Health Boards and NHS Trusts are expected to develop such specialist services for the treatment of these and other psychological disorders based on the assessment of local need.

  The information requested is not available in this form.

Health

Dorothy-Grace Elder (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what the average waiting time is for a specialist bed for patients with anorexia nervosa.

Susan Deacon: The care and treatment of individuals with eating disorders such as anorexia nervosa or bulimia is covered by the Framework for Mental Health Service in Scotland, published in 1997. Health Boards and NHS Trusts are expected to develop such specialist services for the treatment of these and other psychological disorders based on the assessment of local need.

  The information requested is not available in this form.

Health

Andrew Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether any trainee nurse at Monklands Hospital has been in sole charge of any ward in the past year for more than 30 minutes without senior supervision.

Susan Deacon: I am advised by Lanarkshire Acute Hospitals NHS Trust that no trainee nurse has been left in charge of a ward at Monklands Hospital in the past year without the supervision of a trained nurse.

Health

Mr Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) (LD): To ask the Scottish Executive whether arrangements for the collection of shellfish samples for testing for Amnesic Shellfish Poisoning are adequately resourced so that there are no restrictions or delays in the collection of samples which could unnecessarily prolong the closure of shellfish fisheries.

Susan Deacon: The monitoring programme which tests for Amnesic Shellfish Poisoning is undertaken by the Marine Laboratory, Aberdeen. This programme includes the collection of shellfish samples. The Scottish Executive provides the necessary resources to undertake this work. The closure orders on scallop fishing will be lifted when toxin levels are consistently below the legal limit and scientific advice indicates that it is safe to do so.

Rural Affairs

Mr Duncan Hamilton (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive how many of the total number of applications for the Agricultural Business Improvement Scheme this year were made prior to 1 August 1999.

Ross Finnie: The total number of grant applications made under the Agricultural Business Improvement Scheme in the period since 1 January 1999 has been 4,816. Of those, 886 were received before 1 August 1999.

Rural Affairs

Mr Duncan Hamilton (Highlands and Islands) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to access the European Union Contingency Reserve Fund to meet in full the applications made under the Agricultural Business Improvement Scheme for the current year.

Ross Finnie: The European Commission have advised us that they do not have a fund of that name.

Sport

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether the funding gap in respect of the National Stadium project currently stands at £6 million.

Rhona Brankin: It is for Queen’s Park Football Club plc and The National Football Stadium plc to decide what information it wishes to make publicly available about its financial position.

Sport

Mr Kenneth Gibson (Glasgow) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive further to the answer to question S1W-1960 by Mr Sam Galbraith, to what specific assurances regarding the future management and business plan of the National Stadium project its contribution of £2 million was subject.

Rhona Brankin: The Scottish Executive wishes to see new management arrangements which reflect the fact that the construction phase of the project is virtually complete and that the project is now mainly a marketing and management operation. We also wish to see a fully developed business plan which demonstrates that the stadium operation is commercially viable on a long term basis.

Tourism

Fergus Ewing (Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive whether it intends to review the structure of the Scottish Tourist Board with a view to increasing the emphasis on the marketing of Scotland.

Henry McLeish: We have no plans to do so. A Policy and Financial Management Review of the STB undertaken in 1998 found that all of the Board’s current functions are necessary. These functions can be summarised as consumer and trade marketing, the development of the Area Tourist Board network and increasing the competitiveness of the industry. They are carried out in support of the objective that has been set for the Board, which is to help maximise the economic benefit of tourism to Scotland. Currently, over 60% of the Board’s programme expenditure is incurred on consumer and trade marketing.

Transport

Alex Fergusson (South of Scotland) (Con): To ask the Scottish Executive what the cost is per sign of providing local authorities with speed activated signs to deter speeding drivers as currently provided to Dumfries and Galloway council.

Sarah Boyack: The cost of providing the speed activated electronic signs is £5,000 each. In addition the operating cost of each sign is approximately £2,000 per sign per annum.

Transport

Andrew Wilson (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Scottish Executive what share of the current roads budget is allocated for new road building or improvement, as opposed to repairs, and what share of this is accounted for by PFI schemes.

Sarah Boyack: Planned expenditure on motorways and trunk roads in the current year is £163 million. Of this, £93 million is capital expenditure (£23 million for construction and improvement and £70 million for structural repairs and other grants and expenditure). Current expenditure is £70 million with £38 million allocated to routine and winter maintenance and £32 million to "other current expenditure". The annual payments in respect of PFI schemes (A74(M), DBFO and Skye Bridge) will amount to approximately £24.35 million during the current year. These are classified as current expenditure and are met from "other current expenditure".

Transport

Dr Sylvia Jackson (Stirling) (Lab): To ask the Scottish Executive what support it intends to give Better Government for Older People’s campaign for the implementation of uniform concessionary fares on the railways.

Sarah Boyack: At present, under the existing legislation – section 93 of the Transport Act 1985 – it is solely for local authorities to determine their concessionary travel arrangements for pensioners. The Scottish Executive is carefully considering appropriate ways in which to encourage the improvement and integration of such schemes, including concessions for rail travel, for pensioners and those with special needs.

Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body

Parliamentary Procedures

Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP): To ask the Presiding Officer what steps have been taken towards the Parliament developing links such as "twinning" with other emerging nations, especially those in the developing world.

Sir David Steel: No specific steps have been taken by the Parliament to develop "twinning" or other links with emerging nations. I understand that the Procedures Committee will be considering how matters relating to Parliamentary liaison should be handled within the Parliament, with a view to identifying an appropriate mechanism. I am therefore passing your question to the Procedures Committee so that they may take it into account in their deliberations.